Talking to Teddy
by Ozma333
Summary: Outtake from Chapter 26 of Sometimes It Takes Awhile. Teddy asks Bill Weasley’s permission to date his daughter. Teddy/Victoire. Bill’s POV.


Talking to Teddy

Outtake from_ Sometimes It Takes a While_

"So, Teddy, what can I help you with?" Bill asked, regarding the young man who had sat opposite him. Bill noticed that despite Teddy's confidence in asking him into the den to talk, he was looking apprehensive as he turned his head to look at the door. "I silenced it," Bill offered, watching Teddy's reaction. He seemed to be somewhat relieved that he would not be overheard.

"Right, well," Teddy started before stopping to clear his throat. Bill was reminded irrevocably of the time he had gone to ask for Fleur's hand in marriage, but then shook his head absently. Teddy wasn't here to ask anything like that.

"I… I have two things I wanted to talk to you about Bill," Bill nodded his head and Teddy seemed to gather strength," and they're both sort of interconnected so…"

"So, start from the beginning and I'll try to help you out," Bill said kindly. He had always thought the day might come when Teddy would want to ask about werewolf tendencies; in fact he was surprised it had taken this long. Bill knew Teddy must have concerns regarding his heritage and, as the only one in the family with any direct relationship with werewolfs, Bill was prepared to answer anything Teddy could think to ask.

"Well, I've started to see this girl…"

Bill raised his eyebrows.

_Not exactly the way I thought he'd start but…_

"…well not just any girl, she's… she's very special to me, Bill. It's been absolutely fantastic, being with her, and I think this could become something that is very serious."

"You're in love with her," Bill nodded, thinking he'd ease the younger man's job by putting it out there for him. Teddy started and his mouth fell open.

"Well, I've not exactly told her yet."

"I think your secret's safe with me," Bill joked before gesturing at Teddy to continue. Teddy laughed weakly.

"Right, so, it's all got me thinking about the future, about… about children."

Bill nodded, he thought that this was where the conversation would go.

"I've talked with Harry about it, and he thought I should come to you. I know I'm not a werewolf, but I'm worried my blood could somehow affect my children," Teddy said all this in a rush, but his eyes remained locked on Bill. Bill smiled softly at the younger man. He had always been somewhat of a son to the entire Weasley family. He was Harry's godson, true, but he had been Victoire's best friend since birth and Bill had always felt a surge of protection when it came to Teddy. After his parents had died, in the same battle that had taken his brother's life, he, along with the rest of the Weasley family had practically adopted the little metamorphagus. And Bill was especially pleased that Teddy was comfortable enough with him to come to him with these concerns.

"Well, when Fleur and I had this conversation, that is after she berated me for even considering this to be a problem—" Bill was interrupted by Teddy's laugh and eyed him curiously.

"Sorry," the younger man was quick to say, "it's just," he faltered on the girls' name, "_she_ did the exact same thing. Go on."

Bill grinned, pausing for a moment to pick up a heavy paperweight that Victoire had made for him years ago. The conch shell, painted with ludicrous swirls of pink and purple, felt like a comfortable weight in his hands. "Well, Fleur insisted we go to Hermione, ask her about it. Apparently, Muggles study something called genetics and it explains how genes are passed from generation to generation. You know, why parents with blue eyes have children with blue eyes…" Bill trailed off, waving his hand. Teddy nodded his understanding.

"In our case, Fleur's and mine, we were lucky because Veela genes are considered dominant. That is, they are," Bill scratched his head, trying to remember the little squares Hermione had drawn for him all those years ago, "well, with werewolf genes being recessive, we had very little chance of having anything negative pass to any of our children." Bill regarded Teddy carefully, a look of joy was spreading across his face and Bill cleared his throat. Teddy shook his head and the look had vanished.

"Now in your case, being a metamorphagus, well we'd have to check with Hermione of course, but I'd think your genes were pretty dominant."

"Yeah?" Teddy asked, and once more the look of joy was painted over his features.

"I'd like to think nature had a way of protecting innocent children from inheriting such things," Bill shrugged, spinning the shell in his fingers. "You know, lower the chances a bit." Teddy nodded, looking thoughtful for a moment.

"Is that all Teddy?" Bill asked, after giving the young man some time to absorb what he had said. Teddy shifted in his seat nervously.

"Actually, no, Bill. There's something else," Teddy started and it struck Bill that he was nervous again. "It's about the girl…"

"Well, I'll try to help Ted," Bill supplied during Teddy's pause, "but if she's a werewolf or something Hermione is far better at this than—"

"What?" Teddy exclaimed, laughing. "No, she is most definitely not a werewolf."

"She's not, in _trouble_ is she?"

"What? No! Bill, you know me better than that!"

"That's true, I'm sorry. But then there's no need to be nervous…" Bill trailed off as a sudden realization struck him.

_Not my baby…_

Teddy tittered nervously as he regarded him. Bill found he had temporarily lost the ability to speak.

"I care for her, very much so," Teddy continued, his voice softer than before. "I should have realized from the start how serious the relationship would become…"

_Serious? Relationship? But she's so young, not Victoire…_

"…and now that it has I—" Teddy broke off as Bill leaned back heavily into his chair and Victoire's gift fell through his fingers, clanging onto the surface of his desk with a bang. He looked up, blinking.

"We are talking about Victoire, aren't we?" Bill said sharply, looking hard at Teddy.

Teddy swallowed before nodding. "Yes. We should have told you earlier, I realize that, which is one of the reasons I asked to speak with you alone."

"How long has this been going on?"

"Five months, since Christmas," Teddy answered, looking straight into Bill's face.

_Five bloody months! And she never said a word?_

Bill knew he must have looked shocked, and possibly angry, because Teddy rushed to explain.

"We weren't sure at first, how far things would go, and we didn't want to involve the family in something we weren't sure was going to last."

"And now?" Bill asked gruffly.

"And now…" Teddy trailed off but his gaze never faltered. "I can't speak for her. But, at least for me, it will last."

Bill nodded. "I wish I had known earlier."

Teddy grinned ruefully. "At this moment so do I." Bill felt a smile tug on his lips but buried it down.

_Victoire and Teddy. _

If he were honest with himself, he had always thought it might come to this. Fleur teased him about it constantly when the two had been younger. And now here was Teddy, a man grown, and Victoire…

_A woman now, seventeen…_

How the days had flown by.

"I really am sorry we didn't come to you sooner, we should have realized it was better to do so."

Bill nodded and silence enveloped them.

"You said you loved her," he spoke into the stillness.

"I always have," Teddy responded simply and Bill smiled for the first time.

"Her mother used to tease me constantly about that," he laughed and with that the tension broke. "Well, Teddy, I do appreciate you telling me, however late. Who else knows?"

"Harry, Ginny, Nicki, Lou, Katie, and Fleur."

"Bloody hell! Lou knew?" Bill asked in faked exasperation. "I must really be on the outs." Teddy gave a tense laugh and Bill realized he was still anxious.

"I know you and I trust you Teddy. It's alright," Bill said in all seriousness, patting the younger man on the shoulder. Teddy seemed to let out a breath.

"Thanks Bill, er," he paused. "Or should I call you Mr. Weasley now?"

Bill roared with laughter. "Don't you dare!"

"There was one more thing I was going to ask you…"

"You're not going to ask to marry her, are you? Because she's only seventeen and—"

"What? No!" Teddy exclaimed, looking shocked. "I was going to ask her to my flat for dinner tonight."

"Oh," Bill replied, a smug grin on his face at having sufficiently stunned the younger man. "Well, I guess that'd be alright."

Teddy sighed in relief.

"So long as our little talk about genetics won't be put into play until _after_ a marriage," Bill continued firmly, no longer teasing. As Teddy rushed to reassure him, Bill found he had a strong urge to smile.

~*~

Moments later, as Bill looked down into his eldest daughter's upturned face, noting the anxiety splayed across her features he had to, once again, suppress the urge to laugh. She looked absolutely terrified.

"Victoire," he said, coming to a stop in front of her and looking down, trying with all his might to sound stern.

"Yes Daddy," she answered quietly. It was so hard to see her as a woman, all grown, when her eyes, her wrinkled brow, and her nervous voice all plagued him with memories of her as a child, waiting to be scolded after she had done something wrong.

"You're having dinner at Teddy's tonight," Bill said firmly, striding past her quickly before she could see the smirk he couldn't keep from his face.

"Bien joué," Fleur murmured as he slipped his arm around her waist. Bill chuckled as he steered her towards the kitchen.

"I owe you a Galleon now, don't I?" he asked, grinning down at his wife as he referenced a bet she had goaded him into years before.

"You do," she said, swatting him on his stomach. "Or would you like to make it double or nothing?"

Bill glanced down at her curiously. "Dominique will give you odds that they will be married within a year of her Hogwarts graduation!"

Bill felt all the color drain from his cheeks.

A/N: I just couldn't get through Chapter 26 of _Sometimes it Takes Awhile_ without this for a reference. Hope you enjoyed.

Cheers!

~Ozma333


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